Effects of the French Occupation on Algerian Women Research Paper

Introduction

Algeria’s struggle for independence was one of the most phenomenal in Africa. Their struggle for self-governance and liberation from the French rule was characterized by the amazing participation of the entire society. Unlike most of the other countries in Africa where the struggle for independence was a preserve for the males, women in Algeria played a very crucial role. The role of Algeria’s women during the fight for independence was very significant since they were greatly involved in effecting change in the North African country. Women played a notable role in resisting the retrograde forces of Islamic fundamentalism (Channaa, 2010). They are also credited for their role in fighting against terrorist attacks which fundamentally help keep the country in order. Such attacks had almost threatened the existence of Algeria as a nation.

Historical antecedents

To understand the effects of the occupation of the French on women in Algeria, identifying the role of women in the African context is of paramount importance (Amrane & Abu-Haidar, 1999). The country gained its independence in 1962 after the formation of a national revolt that led to the liberation struggle. Interestingly, unlike in other African countries, the liberation struggle championed by the FLN had women playing key roles. Women’s participation was dominant in this struggle. Their roles included nursing injured male fighters, cooking, and working as spies for their male counterparts. Nonetheless, their role in the struggle was not limited to these feminine functions only. Some were involved even in the male-dominated combat. Sinha, (2013) laments that for their roles in the struggle; women paid a very precipitous price. As she observes, after the struggle had ended and the victory was won, women did not receive a fair share of the benefits accrued from independence (Sinha, 2013). They were taken back to their primary position of taking care of the family and managing their homes while their male counterparts were sharing the national wealth among themselves and dividing political powers.

With the segregation between the Algerians and the French, there arose a dispute with regard to religion and it was during the post-independence period that the nation chose Islam as their preferred religious identity. During this era, women were neglected and they could not raise their views since tension gradually escalated within the leadership circles. The issue of Family Law, which was crucial for women, was never discussed until the early 80s (Sinha, 2013). The passing of the law saw the women’s status relegate to second-class citizens with very limited avenues to be heard on national matters. This was so even with the remarkable contribution of women and the role they played in the struggle for independence.

By this time, women had no civil or political rights which meant that they could not vote or vie for political positions. Sinha (2013) defends Algerian women by refuting the notion that they were spectators of their destiny as it was being carved. She insists that the Algerian women have been actively involved in the carving of their destiny citing the different women organizations and activist movements (Sinha, 2013).

Factors leading to the inception of the Algerian feminist movement

The Algerian feminist movement was founded in the 1940s and was fuelled by the poor living conditions influenced by the presence of the French in the country. Women formed the movement to rebel against the oppressive government of the French colony that had turned to extreme violence against them and their children in the 1830s (Evans, 1991). Tired and worried about their security and peaceful existence, the women resolved to stage a revolt against the French rule and their occupation in the country. The French in retaliation turned to violence because they could not silence the Algerian rebellion movements (Karima, 1995). They started capturing the women, killing male children above the age of fifteen, and resorted to exterminating villages as well as expropriating their land (Le Sueur, 2010). There were disastrous ramifications that befell the captured women and children as they were sold like animals to French slave traders. The French soldiers could also slice the villagers’ heads off; rape the women as well as expropriate their properties.

As articulated by Salhi (2009), the French had changed the bodies of the colonized women into arenas of brutal struggles. Such violence wounded the pride of women and killed the honour of the family hence causing women to automatically take a nonchalant position in the struggle. The aim was to pull the women out of the struggle by emotionally destabilizing them through rape and other violent actions against them. Before the onset of colonial rule, women in Algeria used to actively work in the fields (Salhi, 2009). Nonetheless, when the French took over the country, things began to take a new turn on women especially with regard to their free movement in public. Husband withdrew their wives from the fields and did not allow them to work for the new French settlers who had already expropriated all the fertile land (Salhi, 2009).

Women position in the society

In Algeria, women were perceived to play different roles in society and a clear display of such expectations is seen in the utterances of Fadhila Assous of the Front de Liberation Nationale, FLN. The party representative addressed women saying “Dear Women, dear mothers, dear sisters, and dear wives. Be women! Always and forever remain women! Give us many children” (Salhi, 2009, p. 2). The representative continued to show prejudice by saying, “Sweep your floors, and polish your furniture. Make us good soup, and if you have time weave the wool and make some rugs” (Salhi, 2009, p. 2). These utterances were a very clear indication of women’s position or the role of women as expected by the male elite. Women in the Algerian society were expected to play the private role in maintaining their homes and taking care of the family while public and political matters were a preserve of the male gender. An unfortunate statement from one of the FLN leaders, Adbelkader Moghni, deepened the level of women’s prejudice.

He is quoted saying, “Women should go home and leave their jobs for the thousands of young unemployed men. They waste their time, spending their salaries on make-up and dresses” (Salhi, 2009, p. 3). Such statements and attitudes towards the role of women in Algeria had a great impact on the ability of women to influence or contribute to the establishment of an independent nation. The male attitudes towards women led to their exclusion in public matters undermining their roles in the establishment of change in Algeria (Lloyd, 2006). However, during the entire period of the struggle against French rule, women’s strength as agents of change and social cohesion was clearly demonstrated through their struggle and defiance of the family code that was imposed on them in 1984 (Philips, 2013). The rage accumulated in women who were forced to live under unbearable living conditions led to their resort to rebel and fight against the French rule.

Positive effects of French invasion on Algeria’s women

The invasion of the French in Algeria played a major role in creating a civil society that acknowledges the rights and dignity of women. In the traditional African setting, women were not supposed to get involved in politics and leadership matters. With the looming oppression by the French forces, women had an opportunity to prove their worth in the struggle. It is through the struggle that women showed their potential in politics and leadership spheres. Nonetheless, as identified earlier, soon after independence women did not enjoy the fruits of their labor. Their efforts in the struggle were not rewarded, instead, things went back to normal, and they were taken back to their primary role of taking care of the family (Le Sueur, 2010). The French occupation came with the advantage of civilization in terms of education. As the settlers came in, they needed to put up schools for their children which saw the development of an education system in the country. This played a very significant role in empowering women. Nonetheless, it took quite a long time before Africans would be allowed to enroll in school.

For women, it took even longer to get a chance to go to school considering their roles in the African setting. The invasion led to the development of a civil mode of governance as opposed to the traditional African kinship systems (Derradji, 2002). Civilization developed a democratic view among the leaders and citizens and these tools were fundamental in fighting for a better place for women in the society. Democracy led to the respect of the rule of law and this helped carve laws that protected women and their dignity. A number of laws including the family law were created hence giving women a chance to get involved in political decisions. Whereas these steps were made successfully, the efforts to achieve them were met with great resistance from the male elite who were fighting to maintain the status quo in the post-independence era. Women lost their lives fighting for these changes since the incumbent male elite were less interested in allowing women to a have place in a perceived masculine dispensation.

Negative implications of the French invasion of Algeria’s women

As the French expropriated the fertile land in the country, they needed people to work on their farms as laborers. With their cruelty, they strained the men into forced labor without wages and even went ahead to humiliate them in public. This broke the level of family honor and caused a considerable amount of stress to the female (Derradji, 2002). Frustrated with life and embarrassed by their cruel employers, the male would come home with raging anger and relieve their stress on their wives and children. With the looming poverty levels and lack of male leadership in the family, the situation went from bad to worse since the women could not take the pain anymore. The increased poverty levels were making life unbearable for women who had to look after their families since their husbands were forcefully engaged in the settlers’ farms. The level of poverty doubled causing distress to the Algerian women since they had always depended on the males’ labor. The frustration of the males has ultimately released on the females a situation that is referred to by Salhi (2009) as the colonized of the colonized.

The oppression and violence perpetrated by the French military were unbearable for the Algerian women to just sit back and watch. This prompted their participation in the struggle for independence. However, their roles and participation had a number of unanticipated and far-reaching ramifications. Because of the invasion, Algerian women were treated by the French as animals disregarding their human dignity. Their rights were infringed and their female honor was comprised through inhuman acts of rape and other sexual harassment. As the French occupied the country’s most fertile land, they subjected the Algerian women to unbearable poverty as noted earlier, hence lowering their standards of living. This caused the women great emotional stress hence affecting the entire well-being of the country. The one hundred years of colonial rule saw the French implement policies in Algeria that were meant to serve the interests of the French as well as control the country as a colony. These policies were not gendered sensitive hence the long-suffering of women in the country in the pre-independence period (Karima, 1995).

During the invasion, there were enormous massacres and stealing of native properties from the locals. This was because the French military was given the mandate to pacify the country through all the available means to make it habitable for European settlers (Karima, 1995). The pacification of Algeria was characterized by massive crimes against humanity and women and children were the greatest casualties (Karima, 1995). The most degrading crime and one that had a great impact on the women were the cases of rape where the military would capture women and young girls and rape them. These atrocities were committed to instilling fear among the people but this had greater implications. Many women were tortured at the hands of French forces and many families were broken as well. Apart from being deprived of political and civic rights, Algerian women were not given the chance and opportunity to go to school. Education was a preserve of the settlers and even in the post-independence period discrimination of women with regard to education continued to flourish.

Conclusion

This paper has discussed and outlined the political situation during the French invasion of Algeria. A brief historic antecedent has been taken to help us understand the root causes of the struggle for independence in Algeria. The paper has also outlined and discussed the position of women in Algeria in the post and pre-independence era. The paper argues that women were placed in an inferior position in comparison to their male counterparts. Nonetheless, the paper fundamentally notes that the Algerian women played a critical role in the struggle for independence; hence they deserved to be included in sharing the benefits thereof. Throughout the body of the paper, clear presentations of the negative and positive impacts of the French occupation of Algerian on women are outlined. The positive impacts outlined are given but still argued against in this paper to show emphasis on the negative side of the French invasion.

References

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